Brochure PDF - Neurological Surgery at Miller School of

N E U R O S U R G E RY
University of Miami
Jackson Health System
TRAINING PROGRAMS
“I believe this is one of the best training programs. The journey
from student to neurosurgeon, although at times seemingly eternal, was quite swift and steep.
During training, a resident’s task is to absorb multiple small pieces of information from more
experienced senior residents and attending mentors: their knowledge, techniques, management,
and demeanor. In turn, this year’s graduates are equipped to burn light hot as we have been taught
by the country’s premiere collection of mentors and colleagues. I want to thank everyone who has
taught, corrected, or shown me the way by your example. These influences and teachings will always
be a part of my fiber.”
-Jeremiah N. Johnson, M.D., Chief Resident Class of 2014
“I am grateful to the faculty, residents and staff for tolerating me and teaching
me. You have become an extension of my family. I am lucky to have met so many people who are
hard to say good bye to. I will always fondly remember my years in Miami.”
-Faiz Ahmad, M.D., Chief Resident Class of 2014
“I would like to thank my wife and family for their love and support, the faculty
for their patience and teaching, the residents/fellows for their friendship and teamwork, and the
administrative/clinical/hospital staff for their diligence and dedication to our training.
-Ramsey R. Ashour, M.D., Chief Resident Class of 2014
WHAT’S INSIDE
Residency Program.......................................................................1
Neurosurgical Specialties.............................................................5
Fellowship Program......................................................................8
Facilities........................................................................................9
How to Apply...............................................................................10
UHealth Facts.....................................................................................11
Faculty.........................................................................................13
Residents and Fellows................................................................14
A COMPREHENSIVE
TRAINING EXPERIENCE
Overview
The neurosurgical training program
at the University of Miami /Jackson Memorial Hospital
provides an encompassing clinical experience, rich research opportunities, and the dedication
of its faculty to the education of its residents and fellows.
As the only university medical center in South Florida, we directly serve a three county
referral area of 5.5 million people. We also receive complex neurosurgical referrals from
Latin America, the Caribbean, and Europe. Our greatest source of pride is the quality and
contributions of our residents and fellows to our neurosurgical team.
Residency Program
Our program is designed to provide preparation for a career in academic neurosurgery. Our
residency training emphasizes clinical and operative skills under the direction of experienced
attending neurosurgeons. Frequent surgical training is essential to create skillful and knowledgeable
neurosurgeons.
It is important that trainees are exposed in-depth to various subspecialties during their time at the
University of Miami Medical Campus /Jackson Memorial Hospital. Residency rotations offer the
opportunity to become fully competent in a wide range of subspecialties including neurotrauma,
neuroendovascular, neuro-oncology, functional, pediatric, skullbase, and spine.
The program is structured into 3-month and 4-month blocks. The residency rotations are
strategically organized
to build crucial skills in preparation for the next stage of the program. The
structured sequence allows residents to plan their time, studies, and research efforts in advance.
1
Rotations
PGY 1 General Neurosurgery– 4 months
(UMH)
Neurology/ICU – 4 months
(JMH)
PGY 2 Cranial – 4 months
Spine – 4 months
PGY 3 UMH – 4 months
Pediatrics – 4 months
(JMH)
Cranial Service 4 months
(JMH)
Trauma– 4 months
(JMH)
(UMH)
(VAMC) – 4 months
(NCH)
PGY 4 Neuroradiology/Neurointerventional – 4 months
Research/Elective – 8 months
(UMH/JMH)
PGY 5 Research/Elective –12 months
PGY 6 Cranial – 4 months
Spine – 4 months
(JMH)
(UMH)
PGY 7 Chief Resident of Cranial – 4 months
Chief Resident of Spine – 4 months
Chief Resident of UMH – 4 months
(JMH)
(JMH)
Cranial/Spine– 4 months
(JMH)
Residents learn how to function as part of a trauma team.
PGY-1
PGY-2
The PGY-1 year is comprised of three
major blocks: 4 months in general
neurosurgery, 4 months neurology/ICU,
and 4 months of cranial service at JMH.
Junior cranial residents will learn to
deliver neurosurgical care in a tertiary
care/university hospital setting. They
will have daily exposure to the operating
room and a variety of neurosurgical
specialties; including neurovascular
neurosurgery, tumor surgery (acoustic
neuroma, glioma, meningioma, and
transsphenoidal), and functional surgery
including deep brain stimulation,
stereotactic radiosurgery, stereotactic
biopsy, and adult epilepsy.
The goal of year one as a neurosurgery
resident at Jackson Memorial Hospital
(JMH) and the University of Miami
Hospital (UMH) is to gain an indepth foundation in the principles and
practices of general surgery and the
clinical neurosciences of fundamental
importance to neurosurgery.
The PGY-2 year consists of three
4-month blocks at JMH/UMH in the
following subspecialties: cranial, spine,
and neurotrauma.
Junior spine residents will receive daily
exposure to the operating room
2
and to the surgical management of
degenerative spine disease including
minimally invasive techniques and
spinal reconstruction. Residents will also
be taught stabilization and management
of trauma to the spine and spinal cord
injury.
Junior trauma residents will learn to
function as part of the neurosurgical
residency team with emphasis on patient
assessment in
the ER, post-operative
care in
the ICU, inpatient services,
consultation services, outpatient clinics,
and trauma craniotomies. While on-call,
residents will be exposed to ICU related
procedures, including ventriculostomies.
PGY-3
The PGY-3 year consists of a 4-month
rotation at JMH in cranial, a 4-month
pediatric rotation at Nicklaus Children’s
Hospital (formally known as Miami
Children’s Hospital) located a short
drive south of the Medical Campus,
and a 4-month rotation at the Veterans
Administration hospital (VAMC).
The VAMC rotation emphasizes
compassionate and empathetic care
of the veteran patient. Residents are
responsible for histories, physicals,
admission and progress notes, operative
notes, and management plans for
diagnostic workup and treatment while
exhibiting thoroughness, accuracy, and
timeliness throughout the veteran’s
hospitalization.
Patient care at all the hospitals, whether
on the wards and in the clinics, will
be supervised by faculty and staff. The
rapid feedback experience will result in
a culture benefiting not just inpatient
care, but ongoing learning and self
assessment.
PGY-4
The PGY-4 year consists of one
4-month block in a Neuroradiology/
Neurointerventional rotation at JMH,
and one 8 month research block or
elective.
The eight months of dedicated,
protected research time will be used
for either a clinical or laboratory-based
project. This endeavor will allow the
resident to develop the study design,
analytical, and manuscript preparation
skills, create a poster presentation of
the research project to present at an
appropriate national forum, and submit
one or more manuscripts from the
laboratory-based research and/or clinical
series for publication by a peer-reviewed
journal.
The cranial mid-level resident makes
rounds on the entire inpatient service
and is expected to see consults on
inpatients as requested by other
departments. The resident will see
the patient, obtain the appropriate
clinical information, review the
available data and then present a case
summary to the faculty. The resident
is expected to initiate a plan of care
based on review of the literature and
interaction with the faculty and see it
through to completion. This involves
communication with the other medical
teams caring for the patient.
The mid-level spine resident develops
mature clinical judgment related to the
spectrum of problems encountered in
spine pathology and injuries. Residents
will also demonstrate a mature
understanding of surgical strategies and
approaches to common and unusual
spinal pathology and injuries.
Residents are responsible to delegate
appropriate responsibilities to medical
students and interns and to ensure
their implementation, and supervise
junior and medical students in daily
patient assessment and care. Spine
residents must demonstrate the ability
to function independently in all phases
of management of patients with spinal
disorders.
Residents will acquire a fundamental
understanding of a wide range of
neurosurgical disorders in children
during their pediatric rotation.
Residents learn general principles
of neurosurgical management of
pediatric patients and become adept in
interacting with pediatricians, pediatric
specialists, and families; and become
familiar and comfortable with pediatric
neuroradiology. Residents serve as the
primary surgeon under appropriate
supervision for basic pediatric
neurosurgery procedures.
3
PGY-7
PGY-7 is the chief residency year.
The
chief residents organize the operating
schedule and spend 4 months as Chief
of the Cranial Surgery Service at JMH,
4 months as Chief of the Spinal Surgery
Service at JMH, and 4 months as Chief
Resident of Neurosurgery at UMH.
PGY - 5
Residents participate in all aspects of neuroscience research.
In the fifth year, the resident has the
option of continuing in an approved
research project or achieving special
clinical competence through a one-year
in-residency “enfolded fellowship” in an
area of the resident’s choosing such as
spine, neuroendovascular, neurotrauma,
or functional.
Twelve months of research includes
continuation of their PGY-4 clinical
or
laboratory-based research project.
Residents will continue to develop their
study design, analytical, and manuscript
preparation skills and will participate in
Foundations of Translational Research
–
“Bootcamp”. This is a course given by
the University of Miami for training in
the areas of clinical study design, critical
literature review, statistics, ethics in
research, introduction to translational
research, and IRB preparation.
Residents also have the option to
participate in a structured year of
enfolded fellowship such as spine, led by
Dr. Michael Wang, neuroendovascular
led by Dr. Eric Peterson, neurotrauma
led by Dr. M. Ross Bullock, functional
neurosurgery led by Dr. Jonathan Jagid,
and surgical neuro-oncology led by
Drs. Ronald Benveniste and Ricardo
Komotar.
4
PGY - 6
The PGY-6 year is spent completing
4-month blocks each of senior level
cranial and spine at JMH and UMH.
The cranial senior resident develops
skills to independently perform
fundamental procedures in general
neurosurgery. Significant portions
of surgeries in subspecialty areas are
performed, including vascular, epilepsy,
functional, and tumor neurosurgery.
The spine senior resident develops the
knowledge to independently assess
fundamental spine and peripheral nerve
pathology and injury. The resident
learns to independently perform the
following fundamental procedures in
general neurosurgery: laminectomy
(both cervical and lumbar) and
peripheral nerve release procedures. It
is also required to understand and be
able to perform anterior and posterior
approaches for cervical, thoracic, and
lumbar spine. The resident should
be able to perform, with assistance,
procedures such as cervical and lumbar
laminectomy, anterior and posterior
fusion procedures for thoracic and
lumbar spine, and spinal reconstruction
with full range of instrumentation.
Chief cranial residents are responsible
for all aspects of service. This includes
the teaching of junior residents and
medical students at the appropriate
level, gathering essential and accurate
information about all neurosurgical
patients, and understanding indications
for and interpreting the meaning of all
laboratory studies and imaging. A chief
resident must also be able to devise
patient care plans at the level of an
independent neurosurgeon for medical
and surgical management of traumatic
brain injury, simple and complex brain
tumors, aneurysms, AVMs, DAVFs, and
medical and operative complications.
Chief spine residents direct the
operations of a university hospital
neurosurgical service. This includes
interfacing directly with faculty to
formulate treatment plans, performing
all major spine neurosurgical procedures
at an independent level, yet under the
supervision of an attending surgeon,
and working with other services to
provide the optimal care of the patient,
including various operative approaches.
Residents will also gain advanced
experience working with the department
chairmen on administrative and
clinical
duties of the entire department and
the implementation of advanced
neurosurgical problem management
techniques.
Dr. Heros was awarded the Accreditation
Council for Graduate Medical Education’s
(ACGME’s), Parker J. Palmer Courage to Teach
Award in 2006.
Spine
Neurosurgical Specialties
Dr. Allan D. Levi, Professor and
Chairman of Neurosurgery and
Chief
of Neurosurgery at Jackson Memorial
Hospital is an extraordinarily skilled
surgeon with a special interest in
peripheral nerve disorders and treats
patients with nerve entrapments,
tumors, and trauma. He also
maintains a very active clinical research
program in neuroprotection and
neurotransplantation. Several
of our
residents have obtained their research
training in the lab or as part of the
clinical research program. In addition to
his spine practice, Dr. Levi has special
interest in complex peripheral nerve
surgery, providing excellent resident
experience in this area of neurosurgery
which is also a requirement for board
certification. He also is the course
director for the Goodman Oral Board
Review.
Dr. Barth A. Green is one of the most
admired and respected leaders at the
University of Miami. In addition
to the acclaim he has gained as an
extraordinarily busy clinical spine
surgeon, Dr. Green has had a great
impact in Miami as a humanitarian and
visionary.
He co-founded and is Chairman of The
Miami Project
to Cure Paralysis. Dr.
Green
directs the organization’s applied
research programs which include clinical
neurophysiology, bioengineering, and
reproductive physiology. In addition,
he brought to Miami the Shake-ALeg program for paraplegic patients
and
co-founded the very active Project
Medishare for Haiti. Dr. Green was in
Haiti
the morning after the January
2010 earthquake. He organized and
continues to direct the extraordinary
medical relief efforts of the University
of Miami in Port au Prince, Haiti. He
is also the Director of the University of
Miami Global Outreach Initiative. All
of these humanitarian activities have
gained Dr. Green innumerable local and
national acclaim, including the AANS’s
Humanitarian Award in 2011.
Dr. Michael Wang, Director
of
our Spine Service and the Spine
Fellowship Program, is a nationally
and
internationally recognized leader
and innovator in spine surgery and
minimally invasive techniques. Dr.
Wang specializes in the treatment
of complex spinal disorders and his
research areas include the use of robotics
in spinal surgery, resorbable spinal
implants, the treatment of cervical
myelopathy, and the development of
new osteobiologic agents to promote
spinal fusion. He plays a major role in
organized neurosurgery teaching and
has mentored many of the trainees in
recent publications.
Dr. Steven Vanni is a great teacher in
the operating room and has developed
instrumentation and tested novel
techniques in deformity and revision
surgery. With training in Osteopathy
and as a Chiropractor, Dr. Vanni brings
a unique and holistic perspective,
offering both surgical and non-surgical
treatment options.
Drs. Glen R. Manzano and Howard
Levene are highly skilled spine surgeons
with a great commitment to resident
education. Dr. Manzano has a particular
interest in tumors of the spine and
spinal cord and has created a program
focused on research and new treatment
options. Dr. Levene also co-directs
our Veterans Administration program.
He is currently an Investigator on an
experimental model of spinal cord
injury and its treatments at The Miami
Project to Cure Paralysis.
Drs. Ian Côté and Luis Romero both
joined the neurosurgery faculty in
July 2015 after completing their
spine fellowship programs with the
department. Dr. Côté was awarded
a dual fellowship in complex spine
and peripheral nerve surgery and now
serves as co-director of Neurosurgery
at Jackson South Community Hospital
(JSCH). Dr. Romero’s fellowship was in
complex neurological spine surgery.
The scope of practice ranges from
minimally invasive spine surgery and
spinal cord tumors to complex spinal
instrumentation. This dedicated group
of neurospine surgeons collectively
have one of the busiest spinal surgery
practices in the United States.
5
Cranial
The cranial program is led by
Dr. Jacques J. Morcos, Department
Co-Chairman and internationally
recognized as a world-class expert in
both complex cerebrovascular surgery
and the management of skullbase
tumors, who directs the microsurgical
and skullbase laboratory. Dr. Morcos
has developed one of the country’s
busiest skullbase surgical programs
in collaboration with our nationally
recognized ENT neurotologists and
head and neck surgeons. He treats
all aspects of cerebrovascular disease,
brain tumor, and skullbase surgery
including aneurysms, arteriovenous
malformations, carotid stenosis, and
pituitary and skullbase tumors.
Dr. Roberto C. Heros is the Director of
the Residency Training Program. His
major clinical, academic, and research
interest has been in cerebrovascular
surgery. Dr. Heros has been very active
in national leadership positions as past
president of the American Association
of Neurological Surgery (AANS), the
Academy of Neurological Surgeons, and
the World Congress of Neurological
Surgery.
In 2006, he was the Congress of
Neurological Surgeons’ Honored Guest.
In 2007, he won the ACGME’s Parker
J. Palmer “Courage to Teach” award.
In 2010, he was the Harvey Cushing
Medalist, the highest award given to a
neurosurgeon by the AANS.
Endovascular
Neurosurgery
6
Dr. Eric C. Peterson, Director of
Endovascular Neurosurgery, specializes
in the treatment of brain aneurysms
and arteriovenous malformations
(AVMs). He is one of a few dualtrained neurosurgeons in the country
able to offer both surgical and
minimally invasive endovascular
solutions to complex cerebrovascular
disease allowing him to perform all
interventional and diagnostic
neuroangiography, as well as open
microvascular surgery. Dr. Peterson
co-founded the UM Cerebrovascular
Initiative, a research effort focused on
preventing the formation and rupture
of brain aneurysms and AVMs.
Neurooncology
Dr. Ronald J. Benveniste joined our team
in 2008 after a fellowship in surgical
neuro-oncology at MD Anderson
Center in Houston. He is Chief of
Neurosurgery at the VA Medical Center
and leads the neuro-oncology program
at UMHC/Sylvester Comprehensive
Cancer Center and Jackson Memorial
Hospital. His laboratory studies the
molecular mechanisms of brain cancer
metastasis.
Dr. Ricardo J. Komotar leads our
surgical neuro-oncology program at
University of Miami Hospital and
is the Associate Residency Program
Director.
He trained at Columbia then
did
a surgical neuro-oncology fellowship
at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer
Center in New York. His focus is on
surgical and radiosurgical treatment of
primary and metastatic brain tumors,
as well as meningiomas and pituitary
lesions. He is the Director of the UM
Brain Tumor Initiative with research
interests in clinical trial development
and translational neuro-oncologic
investigations designed to pioneer new
therapies for brain tumors.
Dr. Michael E. Ivan joined the
neurosurgery faculty in July 2015 after
completing a neuro-oncology fellowship
program with the department. His focus
is on the treatment and management of
brain tumors, vascular malformations,
and skullbase lesions. Dr. Ivan now
serves as co-director of Neurosurgery
at Jackson South Community Hospital
(JSCH) and Director of Research for
the UM Brain Tumor Initiative.
Radiosurgery
Drs. Howard J. Landy and Jonathan R.
Jagid direct the stereotactic radiosurgery
program, which includes both Gamma
Knife Perfexion and Cyberknife systems.
Training in radiosurgery emphasizes
understanding of clinical radiobiology.
The radiosurgery program is closely
associated with the department efforts
in treatment of selected tumors, vascular
disorders, and functional disorders.
Spinal radiosurgery is performed with
the Cyberknife system.
Head Trauma
Drs. M. Ross Bullock and Jonathan
R.
Jagid are Co-Directors of Neurotrauma
Service at the Ryder Trauma Center
at Jackson Memorial Hospital in
collaboration with Drs. Howard
B. Levene and Ronald Benveniste.
Dr. Bullock specializes in vascular
and general neurosurgery as well
as traumatic brain injury. Dr. Jagid
specializes in the areas of functional
neurosurgery, epilepsy, traumatic brain
injury, and radiosurgery.
Residents learn through active
involvement in our 24-bed
neurosurgical intensive care unit and
have the opportunity to perform both
basic science and clinical research.
Functional
and Epilepsy
Neurosurgery
Dr. Jonathan R. Jagid directs the
functional and adult epilepsy programs,
including deep brain stimulation
stereotactic surgery, and open as well
as laser surgery for epilepsy. Residents
gain exposure to an active clinical and
research program in Parkinson’s disease,
epilepsy and other movement disorders.
Pediatric
Neurosurgery
Our pediatric neurosurgical group is
led by Dr. John J. Ragheb, a nationally
recognized expert in his field, with
a
particular interest in the surgical
treatment of epilepsy. He and Dr. Sanjiv
Bhatia, another highly skilled pediatric
neurosurgeon, have one of the busiest
pediatric epilepsy programs in the
country. Their team
is complimented
by Dr. Toba Niazi, who completed her
residency training
at the University of
Utah then did a pediatric fellowship at
the University
of Washington in Seattle,
and Dr.
Sarah Jernigan, who completed
her neurosurgical residency at the
Brigham and Women’s Hospital and her
fellowship
at Boston Children’s Hospital
which are both associated with Harvard
Medical School. All are very committed
to residency education.
UMH Service
The University of Miami Hospital
is
a 530 bed with 20 operating rooms
and full-service state-of-the-art 8 bed
Neurosurgery ICU and lies across
the street from the Medical Campus.
It is the second busiest arm of the
neurosurgical program with a 1,000
cases performed each year. Dr. Wang is
the Chief of Service and the majority
of the adult neurosurgeons have a
portion of their practice within the
hospital. Areas of strength include
neuro-oncology led by Dr. Komotar,
minimally invasive spine surgery
led by Drs. Wang, Vanni, and Levi,
a collaborative practice with ENT
focusing on skullbase pathology and
hydrocephalus and general spine. Dr.
Manzano specializes in spine neurooncology and Dr. Jagid focuses on
neurostimulation and epilepsy surgery.
All are extremely busy and skilled
neurosurgeons with expertise in both
spinal and cranial surgery and a major
commitment to resident education.
Board
Examination
Requirements
All PGY 2-6 residents are required
to
take the American Board of
Neurological Surgery written
examination annually. Satisfactory
progress must be shown before the
resident advances to the next level of
training. The examination must be
passed for credit prior to the chief
residency year. Wednesday evening
teaching is led by the both residents and
faculty to prepare our residents for the
exam. The faculty also holds a “mock”
oral boards to assist in examination
preparation.
University of Miami Hospital
7
Fellowships
Cerebrovascular
& Skullbase
Surgery
This fellowship program, under the
direction of Dr. Morcos, provides exposure
to an aggressive surgical service, treating
the entire gamut of cerebrovascular disease
and a wide spectrum
of skullbase tumors.
The fellow works mainly with Drs. Morcos,
Heros, Peterson, and Ivan, but also has
regular interaction with the rest of the
attending staff. The skullbase anatomy and
the microsurgical laboratories are available
to the fellows. Clinical research initiatives
are strongly encouraged.
Neuroendovascular
The goal of the neuroendovascular
fellowship is to ensure neurosurgeons,
neurologists and radiologists become
experts in neurointerventional
procedures. Approximately 900 cases
per year are performed at Jackson
Memorial Hospital out of which, 350
are major interventional procedures.
The fellow works primarily with
Dr. Peterson but will have regular
interactions with other members of the
neurosurgery, neurology and radiology
faculty. Extensive research opportunities
are available.
Neuro-oncology
TThe fellowship in surgical neuro-
oncology is led by Dr. Benveniste at
Jackson Memorial Hospital and UMHC/
Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center
and Dr. Komotar at University of Miami
Hospital. This is a very active and growing
multidisciplinary program that includes
close collaboration with medical neurooncology, neuropathology and radiation
oncology. It includes experience with the
gamma knife and cyber knife for brain
tumors.
8
Neurotrauma
Drs. Bullock and Jagid are Co-Directors
of the combined clinical/research
neurotrauma fellowship. Much of the
clinical as well as the research activities
during this fellowship are centered
in our 24 bed Ryder Trauma Center
neurological intensive care unit comanaged by Dr. Bullock and a group
of neurointensivists based in the
Neurology Department. During this
year, the fellow is exposed to extensive
neurotrauma clinical work and also to
Dr. Bullock’s cutting edge neurotrauma
research at The Miami Project
to Cure
Paralysis and
in collaboration with
several of the research faculty.
Pediatric
Neurosurgery
A one year clinical fellowship available
only to neurosurgeons who have
completed general neurosurgery
training. The fellow trains as part of
the Neurosurgery’s pediatric division
and in affiliation with Nicklaus
Children’s Hospital. The fellow will
work with the five full-time pediatric
neurosurgery faculty who typically
complete over 700 pediatric surgical
cases annually. There are opportunities
for basic and clinical research during
the fellowship as well as an extensive
conference schedule.
Spine Surgery
Fellowship positions are available which
provide extensive exposure to all facets
of modern spinal surgery. Dr. Wang
directs the Spine Fellowship. Experience
is gained in trauma, degenerative and
vascular disease, and tumor surgery
utilizing state-of-the-art techniques in
instrumentation, microsurgery, and
neurophysiologic monitoring. Extensive
research opportunities are available
in this area. Our spine neurosurgery
faculty includes Drs. Levi, Green,
Wang, Vanni, Levene, Côté, Romero,
and Manzano.
Research
The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis
is a comprehensive scientific research
program focused
on spinal cord injury
and co-founded
by Dr. Green. The cutting edge research conducted at the Lois
Pope LIFE Center encompasses every
aspect of neuroscience (molecular and
cellular biology, tissue transplantation
and regeneration, and physiology and
functional studies) which are translated
into the clinical arena. A multidisciplinary team of basic scientists and
clinicians work together in a unique,
integrated environment under the auspices of the neurosurgery. For Federal
Fiscal Year 2010, the Department of
Neurological Surgery at the University
of Miami, Miller School of Medicine
was ranked #3 in the nation based on
NIH Funding.
An internationally recognized neuroscientist and Vice-Chairman of Research,
Dr. Dalton Dietrich serves as a liaison
between the clinical and research faculty
of the department, assisting each fellow
in planning and implementing their one
or two year research program.
The Miami Project is a center of neuroscience excellence and an important
resource for the neurosurgical fellows
and residents.
Facilities
Jackson Memorial Hospital (JMH)
is one of the largest and busiest
hospitals in the United States. JMH
serves as the only Level l Trauma
Center in South Florida. The adult
neurosurgical service at JMH is
situated on the seventh, eighth and
ninth floors of the West Wing of
the hospital. The seventh and ninth
floors are each 36- bed patient care
units. The eighth floor is the 24bed Neurosurgical Intensive Care
Unit, which provides all aspects
of critical care management.
Several rotations also take place
at the Veterans Affair Medical
Center (VAMC) and University of
Miami Hospital (UMH). UMH is
a recently acquired facility with a
dedicated neurointensive care unit
Conferences
Grand Rounds
Neurological Surgery Grand Rounds
are held weekly and include topics in
the fields of neurology, neuro-oncology,
epilepsy, neuro-ophthalmology,
neuroradiology, neurotology, neuro
endocrinology and neuropathology.
A Morbidity & Mortality Conference
is also incorporated into the Grand
Rounds schedule.
located across the street from the
Medical Campus.
Pediatric patients are housed
at
Nicklaus Children’s Hospital
located a few miles south and
JMH’s Holtz Children’s Hospital
located at the Medical Campus.
There are more than 3,800 major
neurosurgical pediatric procedures
performed by this service each
year.
The Ryder Trauma Center contains
separate dedicated operating
rooms used for acute head injuries.
Surgical procedures are also
conducted in a state-of-the-art
microsurgical skullbase laboratory
shared with the Otolaryngology
Throughout the academic year, we will
invite nationally and internationally
distinguished visiting professors to
speak in their specific area of expertise.
Dr. Heros conducts a service report
and teaching conference three times
a week and Dr. Levi conducts a
weekly joint spine conference with the
orthopedic spine service. Chief residents
hold a weekly resident conference in
preparation for the written boards.
Department. Led by Dr. Morcos,
the presence of the neurosurgery
laboratory creates an opportunity
for residents and fellows to practice
microsurgical techniques, such as
microanastomosis, on experimental
animals.
Jackson Memorial Hospital,
Veterans Affairs Medical Center,
and University of Miami Hospital
and Clinics are located on the
Medical Campus, a five-block
area in the city center of Miami
between downtown and the Miami
International Airport. The Nicklaus
Children’s Hospital is located 20
minutes south and accessible via
highway or Miami-Dade Transit’s
Metrorail System.
Rosomoff
Research Day
This annual event includes presentations of
original research by the residents, fellows,
clinical faculty, and visiting professors. The
day is named in honor of the long career
in clinical research of the late Dr. Hubert
Rososmoff, the department’s former
Chairman Emeritus.
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Neurosurgery
Sports Day
Each year neurosurgery residents,
fellows, and clinical faculty participate
in the Neurosurgery “Sports Day”. The
department competes against residents and
fellows in other specialty areas
for bragging
rights. We also compete in the annual
Neurosurgery Softball Championship
in New York, hosted by Columbia
University, to help benefit the Brain Tumor
Foundation. We won the Championship
Trophy in 2012. These events promote
fitness and comradery.
academy, The New World Symphony
and one of the top ballet companies
in
America, Miami City Ballet. Miami
also boasts professional NFL, NBA,
NHL, and MLB teams.
Area beaches have been recognized as
top picks for recreation and families,
and have been ranked among the best
beaches by USA Today and the Travel
Channel.
Whether you prefer the urban lifestyle
of downtown Miami or Brickell, the
beachfront of Miami Beach or Key
Biscayne, or the suburbs, there are
options for everyone.
Ocean Drive, Miami Beach
Living in Miami
Miami is an energetic global center
with one of the world’s busiest airports
and the largest cruise port on the
planet. Miami is home to more than
1,500 multinational companies and the
only community outside of Switzerland
to annually host the world’s premiere
art fair, Art Basel.
Residents of Miami also experience
a
wide array of talent at one of the
world’s finest venues, the new Adrienne
Arsht Center for the Performing
Arts,
as well as the nation’s orchestral
How to Apply
Residents
To apply for a Residency Position please use
the ERAS Matching Service.
Application Requirements:
• USMLE Step 1 and a minimum passing
score of 230
• 3 letters of recommendation (preferable
from other academic neurosurgeons)
• Research experience is preferred, but not
required.
Our deadline for application is September 30th
of each year.
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We accept International Medical Graduates
(IMG) who meet the qualifications listed
and those who have a valid ECFMG
Certificate and have completed USMLE
Steps 1, 2 and 3, all with a minimum
score of 230, and who meet immigration
requirements for a J1 Clinical Visa.
Previous clinical and research experience in
the U.S. is preferred but not required for
IMG’s to apply for Residency.
Fellows
If you are interested in applying for a Fellowship, you must have completed an accredited
Residency Program in Neurological Surgery
to qualify.
For additional information, please contact
the Neurological Surgery Education Office
via email at nrstraining@med.miami.edu
and specify your preferred academic year and
fellowship subspecialty
UHealth Facts
About Us
Serving more than five million people
as the only academic medical center in
South Florida, UHealth – University of
Miami Health System/ Miller School
of Medicine has earned international
acclaim for research, clinical care, and
biomedical innovations. Founded
in 1952 as Florida’s first accredited
medical school, the University of Miami
Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine
provides medical staff for
the nationally
renowned University
of Miami/
Jackson Memorial Hospital Medical
Campus and University of Miami
Hospital. University of Miami Hospital
is the flagship facility of UHealth,
which also includes two additional
University-owned hospitals: Sylvester
Comprehensive Cancer Center and
Anne Bates Leach Eye Hospital, home
to the top-ranked Bascom Palmer Eye
Institute. Our affiliated hospitals on
the medical campus include Jackson
Memorial Hospital, JMH’s Holtz
Children’s Hospital, and the Miami
Veterans Affairs Medical Center.
Our new institutes, such as Interdisciplinary Stem Cell
Institute, Miami Institute for Human Genomics, and the Center for Computational Sciences,
will further enhance research. The research conducted here continues to enrich the quality of life for
people worldwide.
Statistics & Rankings
Each year, the University of Miami’s Miller
School of Medicine’s more than 1,200
faculty physicians have over a million
primary care patient encounters in primary
care and more than 100 medical specialties
and sub-specialties. UHealth also has more
than 8,000 employees.
In 2014, U.S. News & World Report
listed Bascom Palmer Eye Institute as the
number one hospital in the country for
ophthalmology for the seventh year in a row.
Three other UM Miller School of Medicine
specialties were also listed among the nation’s
best: neurosurgery, ear, nose and throat and
geriatrics. Research is a top priority, with
more than 1,500 ongoing projects funded
by more than $200 million in external
grants and contracts to UM faculty.
The Medical Campus consists of nearly 68
acres within the 153-acre complex of the
University of Miami/Jackson Memorial
Medical Center, including more than
500,000 square feet of research space with
the recently completed UM Life Science
Park, which has added an additional two
million square feet of space to the medical
campus.
The UM Life Science Park brings together
academia and industry for collaboration in
bioscience research innovation.
Our centers of excellence are continually ranked among the
nation’s best, including Bascom Palmer Eye Institute, The Miami Project to Cure Paralysis,
and the Diabetes Research Institute.
Neurosurgery
Accreditation & NIH
Ranking
The Department of Neurosurgery has again
been granted the maximum 5 year accreditation by the ACGME – RCC, a level which
is only awarded to 20% of neurosurgery
departments nationally. The Department of
Neurosurgery at the University of Miami’s
Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine
received its original accreditation in 1965.
The department ranks 3rd in the country in
2010 NIH research funding and number 38
in the last U.S. News & World Report
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Full Time Clinical Faculty
Levi, Allan D., M.D., Ph.D.
Professor & Chairman of Neurological
Surgery Chief of Service, Jackson
Memorial Hospital
Morcos, Jacques J., M.D.
Professor & Co-Chairman
of
Neurological Surgery Division Chief,
Cranial Medical Director, Neurosurgery
Cranial UMHC
Komotar, Ricardo Jorge, M.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery Medical Director,
Neuro-Oncology, UMH Co-Director,
Neuro-Oncology, UMHC Assistant
Program Director
Benveniste, Ronald J., M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Clinical
Neurological Surgery Director, NeuroOncology UMHC
Landy, Howard J., M.D..
Professor of Neurological Surgery
Co-Medical Director Cyberknife
UMHC
Clerkship Director
Bullock, Malcolm R., M.D., Ph.D.
Professor of Neurological Surgery
Medical Director, Neuro-Trauma JMH
Levene, Howard B., M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery
Côté, Ian., M.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery, Chief Spine
Service JSCH
Manzano, Glen R., M.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery, Medical Director,
Neurosurgery Spine Tumors, UMHC
Elhammady, Samy A., M.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery
Peterson, Eric C., M.D., M.S.
Director of Endovascular Neurosurgery,
University of Miami Hospital and
Jackson Memorial Hospital, Director of
Endovascular Fellowship, University of
Miami
Green, Barth A., M.D.
Professor of Neurological Surgery
Chairman of the Miami Project to Cure
Paralysis
Guest, James D., M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Clinical
Neurological Surgery
Heros, Roberto C., M.D.
Professor of Neurological Surgery
Program Director
Ivan E, Michael M.D.
Assistant Professor of Clinical
Neurological Surgery
Chief, Cranial
and Neuro-Oncology Service JSCH
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Sarah C. Jernigan, M.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery
Jagid, Jonathan R., M.D.
Associate Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery Medical
Director, DBS at UMH
Romero, Luis, M.D.
Assistant Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery
Vanni, Steven, D.O., D.C.
Associate Professor
of Clinical
Neurological Surgery Division Chief,
Spine Medical Director, Spine JMH
Wang, Michael Y., M.D.
Professor of Neurological Surgery Chief
of Service, UMH Medical Director,
Minimally Invasive Spine UMH
Hotz, Gillian A., Ph.D.
Director Neurotrauma Outcome
Research
Co-Director Pediatric Neurotrauma
Program
Associate Research Professor
Yavagal, Dileep R., M.D.
Co-Director of Endovascular Neurology
2015-2016 Residents
Brandon Gaynor, M.D.
Chief
Joanna Gernsback, M.D.
PGY NS-5
Stephen “Shelby” Burks, MD.
PGY NS-2
Seth Hayes, M.D.
Chief
Walter J. Jermakowicz, M.D., Ph.D
PGY NS-4
Iahn Cajigas, MD, Ph.D.
PGY NS-2
John Serak, M.D.
PGY NS-6
Samir Sur, M.D.
PGY NS-4
Ashish Shah, MD.
PGY NS-2
Giancarlo Perez, M.D.
PGY NS-6
Timur Urakov, M.D.
PGY NS-4
Gregory Basil, M.D.
PGY NS-1
Andrew L. Middleton, M.D.
PGY NS-6
Simon Buttrick, MD
PGY NS-3
Stephanie Chen, M.D.
PGY NS-1
Nicholas Ferraro, M.D.
PGY NS-5
Karthik Madhaven, MD
PGY NS-3
Jason Liounakos, M.D.
PGY NS-1
Brian Snelling, M.D.
PGY NS-5
Angela Richardson, MD, Ph.D.
PGY NS-3
2015-2016 Fellows
Osaama Khan, M.D.
CRANIAL
Matthew Gary, M.D.
SPINE
Ignacio Jusue, M.D.
TRAUMA
Roberto Diaz, M.D.
NEURO-ONCOLOGY
Brian Snelling, M.D.
ENDOVASCULAR
Travis Tierney, M.D.
PEDIATRIC
Basheer Shakir, M.D.
SPINE
Walter J. Jermakowicz, M.D., Ph.D.
FUNCTIONAL
Julius Ebinu, M.D.
SPINE
Serve our patients
OUR MISSION
to the best of our ability by providing them with excellent neurosurgical care.
Advance the field of neurosurgery
through our clinical and research training programs.
Develop new progressive treatments
for neurological disorders.
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Mission Statement
Our mission is to serve our patients to the best of our ability by providing them with the best neurosurgical care available
in the world and by advancing the field of neurosurgery through our clinical and research training programs by which we
hope to develop new and better treatment for neurological disorders.
We are equally committed to the training of resident and fellow physicians, and to the continuing medical education of
practicing physicians in the art and science of neurosurgery.
DEPARTMENT OF NEUROLOGICAL SURGERY
Lois Pope Life Center
1095 NW 14th Terrace
Miami, FL 33136
305.243.6946 Phone
www.neurosurgery.med.miami.edu